Government is a cancer that grows   but never shrinks.

So, the ones who prefer freedom, I and most likely you who are reading this, have little to look forward to as time goes on: more government emerges and this equates to less freedom. I would never want more government in any case, and I want everyone to live free, but I am realistic towards an ever growing government.

Konkin said that agorism was the successor to libertarianism. As I put it, Agorists are advanced libertarians, and yes there is a difference not only with what actions one would take under certain circumstances but the mind set as well. This is because agorists are adaptive to market changes and not only survive but thrive under increasing tyrannical regimes while suffocating the state of tax dollars. Historically this was seen in examples such as the Soviet Union. We thrive because not only do we expect it, but we take action in preparation and sometimes even embrace it.

Agorists are known for their entrepreneurial spirit and not only build self-sustainable systems which they profit on, but as Sal Mayweather host of The Agora podcast mentions, they’re also disruptors. A great example of this is cryptocurrency, which completely disrupted and decentralized the entire global financial system. Agorists not only have libertarian ideals, but also have planning and action to execute.

For example, if government talks about banning certain items, the agorist is the one who buys the item, stockpiles it, and later sells it for a profit later; or better yet, sees alcohol prohibition coming and already has the infrastructure and connections built and ready for prohibition. The libertarian who thinks, “no we just need less taxes”, doesn’t go far enough.  While this is true, it’s unrealistic and merely a reactive approach. Government will not relinquish power. The agorist sees more taxes being implemented and imagines all the ways people are or could be getting around them.

Years ago, I was worried about the looming hyperinflationary event that is still on the horizon, because throughout history, whenever a currency collapse occurs, governments always attempt to control prices, and price controls always lead to mass shortages. Which, in turn, leads to printing of currency and later to hyperinflation. Only the market can set prices through supply and demand; if prices increase tremendously, it’s because the market is signaling that more of those products need to be made or transported to that area and the high prices reward those who deliver it.

After reading SEK3’s book, Counter-Economics: From the Back Alleys to the Stars, I realized that price controls will leave state coffers empty. When price controls are demanded by the state, they are forcing everyone in the sector that the price controls impact to sell at a loss, causing merchants to leave that industry all together and turning the remaining ones in the price-controlled industry into counter-economists.

The merchants that remain will be selling off the books, and mostly in complete grey markets to be able to stay afloat.  They will also have to fix their books in accordance with the edict. They’ll also accept other forms of money or barter that are outside of the traditional banking system and that which is harder to trace. This not only helps by creating a lot of counter-economists, but in turn pushes more people toward mediums of exchange that are not government-issued fiat, AKA violently-enforced money.

I’ve seen many agorists on social media call for decriminalization and not legalization so the state doesn’t receive the tax that comes with it. I suggest that the ideal scenario would be full legalization with a 5000% tax.

This would keep non-violent offenders out of the prison system. For example drug, users would be able to use the drug of their choice without the gestapo harassing them and locking them up for such things. Additionally, the state would collect next to nothing in taxes on the products; no one in their right mind would pay a 5000% sales tax, that high of a price percentage on the legal market for any product. We see this time and time again with legal marijuana: the state taxes marijuana at such high rates that the grey market for marijuana many times out competes the legal markets. Sadly, the state would realize they’d need to lower the ridiculous 5000% tax, but even a 25% tax can be devastating.

California’s state and local taxes add up to 25% and the black market on marijuana is eclipsing the legal one, although there are other factors to consider; a 25% tax on almost anything would make even the most dedicated statist stop and consider other options if they became available. Of course, some will always blame markets and not the real culprit, government.

Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Until such a time that the ideas of voluntary interaction and agorism gain sufficient support, we should recognize that the state will continue to become more tyrannical. The practical and principled response is to be adaptive and proactive, making the most of these peculiar opportunities that the state is creating for the liberty-minded person.